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2/20/2013

2013 - The Supporting Actresses

POTENTIAL
FRONTRUNNERS

Julianne Moore (Carrie)

Even though we will see a lot of her
in 2013 (What Maisie Knew, The English Teacher, The Seventh Son), I
think her baitiest role will be Margaret White, the abusive,
mentally ill, fanatically religious mother of the title character,
a role that garnered an Oscar nomination for Piper Laurie. Julianne
Moore is widely considered as one of the greatest actresses who has
yet to win an Oscar, and though I would love to see her take the
lead category, a win in supporting could be a nice start as far as
her future Oscars go...

Cate Blanchett (The
Monuments Men)

With the two Malick-films and Woody
Allen's latest, she could have a really great year, and though it
is perfectly conceivable she will make the cut in lead (Blue
Jasmine), it's not like she couldn't pull double duty just like she
did the last time she was nominated (2007).

Nicole Kidman (The Railway
Man)

Her genre performance in Stoker,
released in March, has been already garnering her critical praise,
and she will be definitely in consideration for a lead nomination
(Grace of Monaco), as well, but in the end her best shot might be
this supporting wife character in a film backed by The Weinstein
Company.

Julianne Nicholson (August
: Osage County)

Even with massive internal
competition, her role is fantastic so if she nails it, she will be
able to stand out, not to mention internal competition might not be
that damaging in this case, I wouldn't be surprised at all if the
film scored multiple nominations in this category in the end.

Jennifer Garner (Dallas
Buyers Club)

With few exceptions, she hasn't
gotten feature opportunities worthy of her talent, but this
definitely sounds like a great role and if she can bring the same
sensitivity and intelligence she brought to her criminally
underrated turn in Juno, she could even emerge as the one to beat.

Amy Adams (Her)

Although she has several films this
year (Lullaby, Man of Steel, maybe even the new David O. Russell
film AND the Janis Joplin biopic), in my opinion if this Academy
darling receives her fifth nomination, it will be for Spike Jonze's
quirky little indie.

Octavia Spencer (Fruitvale)

The extremely likable Octavia Spencer
deserves praise for starring in the second (!) critically acclaimed
indie since her Oscar win, and since this one was THE Sundance-hit
in January AND was quickly snatched up by The Weinstein Company,
it's safe to assume she might be back in the Oscar game this year.

Quvenzhané Wallis (Twelve
Years a Slave)

Despite her tender age, the big
revelation of 2012 already has another great film in her near
future, and if the role is significant enough, she could once again
find herself on the shortlists. Although it's worth mentioning that Alfre Woodard and Sarah Paulson could have bigger supporting roles in this, and according to Awardsdaily-friend, rufussondheim - who unlike me, actually READ the book - we should watch out for Adepero Oduye (Eliza) and Lupita Nyong (Patsey), as well.

Juliette Lewis (August :
Osage County)

Since her big break (Cape Fear), she
had been rarely given the opportunity to shine on the big screen,
although on those rare occasions she was truly brilliant (most
recently in Conviction). Internal competition won't be her friend,
but if critics go crazy for the film, Harvey Weinstein will
definitely do his best to secure several nominations in this
category.

Margo Martindale (August :
Osage County)

When all is said and done, this Emmy
winner could be the sole nominee of her film here, her memorable
part, Mattie Fae could be the role of a lifetime for the talented
Martindale.

Carey Mulligan (Inside
Llewyn Davis)

It's unlikely Daisy Buchanan would
end up in the supporting category and if she indeed doesn't,
Mulligan could be a viable threat here with the new Coen film.

Jessica Lange (Therese
Raquin)

A born scenestealer in a VERY juicy
role. Even if the film disappoints, Jessica Lange as Madame Raquin
most certainly will NOT.

Jane Fonda (The Butler)

There is a chance her screentime is
very limited and it is basically just a cameo, nonetheless the
first pictures were rather impressive.

Oprah Winfrey (The Butler)

Ditto.

Catherine Keener (Captain
Philipps)

This indie queen is looking at her
third Oscar nomination this year, and playing the wife of the title
character, directed by Paul Greengrass, might just secure her her
first victory, just as well.

Jennifer
Connelly
(Winter's Tale)

She
won this category 12 years ago, and now playing the mother of the
terminally ill heroine, could easily provide her best material in
years.

Mireille
Enos
(Devil's Knot)

If
her stunning work on The Killing is any indication, and her role is
even a tiny bit challenging, she will be a remarkably memorable
presence in this.

Laura
Linney
(The Fifth Estate)

Sooner
or later the Academy will realize that giving an Oscar to Laura
Linney is just a matter of time, whether they will realize that
this year, that I don't know. Also Alicia Vikander might have a
bigger role than she does.

Viola Davis (The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby)

If there is any justice in the world, sooner or later she WILL win
an Oscar, and this daring independent film could be her ticket, but
then again, so could Prisoners. We'll see, we'll see !

Kristin Scott Thomas (Only
God Forgives)

How the Academy has managed to ignore her for all these years
despite A LOT of brilliant performances, I don't know. Could this
genre film get her back in the Oscar game ?

STRONG CONTENDERS

Margot Robbie (The Wolf of
Wall Street)

The film seems to be all about the
male characters, which could mean she will be overshadowed, but
also that she won't have trouble standing out.

Olivia Wilde (Rush OR Her
OR The Third Person)

I don't know much about any of those
roles, but working with Ron Howard, Spike Jonze and Paul Haggis in
the same year, definitely sounds promising...AND she was fantastic
in Butter last year.

Isla Fisher (The Great
Gatsby)

She could be easily overshadowed by
the leads, but playing against type could go a long way with the
Academy, so we shouldn't count her out just yet.

Victoria Summer (Saving Mr.
Banks)

Even though she has famous and
acclaimed female co-stars in supporting roles (Rachel Griffiths,
Kathy Baker, Ruth Wilson), playing the great icon, Julie Andrews
could give her the edge in the long run...that is if the
performance is uncanny and the film is well-received.

Sienna Miller (Foxcatcher)

Another film that seems to revolve
around the male characters, but Miller is talented and charismatic
enough to stand out, so she might just do that here, too.

Vanessa Redgrave
(Unfinished Song OR Foxcatcher)

Her heartbreakingly beautiful
performance in Unfinished Song might be overshadowed by the
lukewarm critical response and early release date, but if
Foxcatcher becomes the big Oscar-contender I expect it to, she
could have another shot at a nomination this year.

Cameron Diaz (The
Counselor)

With 4 Golden Globe, 2 SAG, 1 Critics
Choice and 1 Bafta nominations under her belt, it's rather
surprising she has yet to receive an Oscar nomination...maybe this
year ?

Penelope Cruz (The
Counselor OR Los amantes pasajeros)

The Academy clearly loves her,
question is how challenging her role is ?

Natalie Dormer (Rush OR The
Counselor)

Even though they love discovering new
faces, it's unlikely either of those roles are significant enough
to warrant Academy attention.

Sally Hawkins (Blue Jasmine)

Plut undisclosed, but she is great enough to be automatically on
the map.

Elizabeth Olsen (Oldboy OR
Kill your darlings)

With a title role (Therese Raquin),
as well, she will have another prolific year, question is can she
make the cut in supporting actress considering Oldoby is a genre
film and Kill your darlings is a little indie ?

Rachel McAdams (A Most
Wanted Man)

She got some good ink for Terrence
Malick's To the Wonder and Brian De Palma's Passion, also she
starred in Woody Allen's Best Picture nominated Midnight in Paris
the year before, so long story short, she has been building some
serious indie cred recently while remaining a very succesful Box
Office draw (The Vow). If this film hits all the right notes, she
could receive her first Oscar nomination, whether in lead or
supporting, that I don't know.

Reese Witherspoon (Mud)

Cannes reviews from last year praised
her work in Jeff Nichols's Mud and it is perfectly conceivable that
she will be campaigned here for Atom Egoyan's Devil's Knot, too, so
long story short, after a lot of silly comedies, this
Election-standout seems to be finally back to her A-game.

Eva Mendes (The Place
Beyond the Pines)

ANOTHER film about men, and it's not
like the early release date doesn' hurt even them. For what it's
worth, it's nice to see Mendes taking herself seriously, the role
sounds excellent.

Susan Sarandon (The Company
You Keep)

Even though she might have just
delivered her best performance in years, the film didn't really wow
festival audiences, so her work will probably suffer because of it.

Emmy Rossum (You're not
you)

After a very promising start that
included a crucial role in Eastwood's Mystic River, an expertly
executed lead performance in the ill-fated The Phantom of the Opera
and a part in the tentpole smash hit The Day After Tomorrow, she
failed to get worthy feature opportunities, so she successfully
turned to TV. The role of an aimless young girl who becomes the
caretaker of a terminally ill woman, could be her most challenging
to date.

Onata Aprile (What Maisie Knew)

Child performances usually fare well in this category, problem is
the film, though acclaimed, seemingly failed to excite audiences so
probably no passionate awards campaign can be expected.

Angela Sarafyan (Lowlife)

I took a wild guess that she plays the down on her luck sister, and
if that's the case, she could be one of the big revelations of
2013.

Hailee Steinfeld (Can a song save a life ?)

Could she be back in this category so soon after True Grit (2010) ?

Rosario Dawson (Trance)

Genre performances in general, don't tend to fare well, but ones
released early in the year, usually don't stand a chance.

Jodie Foster (Elysium)

It would be great to see her back in the Oscar-game, but for now it
seems unlikely it could happen with a sci-fi.

Paz Vega (Grace of Monaco)

Her screentime could be cameo-territory, but nonetheless, she plays
legendary opera singer Maria Callas, and that instantly puts her on
the map.

Emma Thompson (Effie)

She penned the script, so she probably wrote a great role for
herself, but it's more likely she will receive awards attention for
playing Mary Poppins author P.L. Travers in Saving Mr. Banks.

Dakota Fanning (Night moves)

This could be a lead role for all I know, and as great as it is to
see her challenge herself with edgy roles like this, I don't think
she will pique the Academy's interest with this. Effie on the other
hand...

Natalie Portman (Knight of
Cups OR The other Malick film)

Working with Terrence Malick is
clearly a unique experience, one to be proud of etc., but it rarely
translates into Oscar-glory.

Judy Davis (The Young and Prodigious Spivet)

How wonderful it would be if this shockingly underrated acting
giant could make a big Oscar-comeback this year, but for that, she
would probably have to outshine co-star Helena Bonham Carter first.

NEXT YEAR ?

Julia Stiles (The First)

Frances
Marion seems like the kind of role that wins supporting actress
Oscars and it's also nice to see Julia Stiles making
another promising move on the comeback train : first her critically
acclaimed turn in Dexter, then a small part in the big
awards-magnet Silver Linings Playbook, and now this. Back in the
day I considered her a promising young talent and now that her
mediocre romcom phase officially ended, it’s nice to see her
finally attempting to live up to her great potential.

Emma Watson (Noah)

It's great that she seems to be so focused on her post-Harry Potter
career and so far it does feel like she has been making the right
calls : My Week with Marilyn, The Perks of Being a Wallflower,
Sofia Coppola's The Bling Ring and Darren Aronofsky's Noah. Her CV
is starting to look very impressive.

Madison Davenport (Noah)

I considered her a promising talent based on her stint on
Shameless, so it will be interesting to see what she can do in such
a high-profile film.

Saoirse Ronan / Tilda Swinton (The Grand Budapest
Hotel)

Both are rare acting talents, but Wes Anderson's films are rarely
considered seriously in the acting categories.